


start of something new

by euphorickiri



Series: rina week 2020 [1]
Category: High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (TV)
Genre: F/M, Rina Week 2020 (HSM: The Series), second love excellence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-11
Updated: 2020-05-11
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:07:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,060
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24131809
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/euphorickiri/pseuds/euphorickiri
Summary: ricky learns a few things about love.in other words: a different take on the rina hoco scene, from ricky's perspective
Relationships: Ricky Bowen/Gina Porter
Series: rina week 2020 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1741261
Comments: 5
Kudos: 38





	start of something new

If Ricky was being honest with himself, he didn’t know what to make of his relationship with Nini anymore.

Before any of the drama, they were best friends first. Being around her used to be so  _ easy _ . They told each other everything, never fought, and were basically attached at the hip. They knew each other better than anyone else and they felt safe with each other. So when Nini admitted she had a crush on him, Ricky didn’t even think twice. This was bound to happen at some point, right? Childhood best friends falling in love. It just made sense. No one was even surprised when they started dating. Ricky’s dad teased him for  _ weeks  _ and Nini’s moms wouldn’t stop making jokes about their wedding. Everything seemed like it was going the way it was supposed to.

So why couldn’t Ricky tell Nini that he loved her?

It should’ve been a no brainer. There was no reason for Ricky to hesitate. Nini had poured her heart into the song and put herself out there. It was only a matter of time before they reached this stage of their relationship. Ricky  _ knew  _ that, but he still couldn’t bring himself to say anything.

From that point, everything changed. Ricky tried to fight for Nini, he really did. But it didn’t feel right anymore. He was starting to think it never did. His relationship with Nini was safe. Predictable. Everything between them was just so  _ easy _ . 

But love isn’t supposed to be easy, is it? 

Granted Ricky didn’t know a lot about love, but he was starting to realize that he didn’t love Nini in the way he thought he did. He honestly didn’t even know how to fix things. She didn’t want to be anywhere near him and refused to hear him out. Ricky was hoping maybe homecoming would give him a chance to try and talk to Nini, but she didn’t even bother to show up. After that revelation, Ricky expected the rest of the night to be uneventful. 

He didn’t plan on getting into an argument with Gina, let alone chasing after her to apologize. 

Seeing her walk into homecoming with EJ struck a nerve. The senior just broke up with Nini and he already moved on? But for some reason, the fact that EJ was with Gina bothered Ricky more than he would admit out loud. Big Red gave him a knowing look after he blew up at Gina, but Ricky pretended not to see it. 

The drive to Gina’s house was silent. It wasn’t awkward by any means, which was a surprise to Ricky. He glanced at Gina throughout the ride, not noticing she glanced right back when he turned away. When they finally reached Gina’s house, Ricky tried to ignore the small part of him that didn’t want her to leave. He smiled slightly when Gina made no move to leave his car, realizing she didn’t want to leave either. 

Talking with Gina at a personal level wasn’t something Ricky thought he would ever do. But he was an outsider just like her. They  _ got  _ each other. Ricky didn’t realize how much being a part of theatre meant to him until Gina convinced him to stay. 

He joined for Nini, but stayed for Gina.

She was unpredictable. Ricky honestly never knew what to expect from Gina. She was the  _ last  _ person he expected to be at the skate park to try and bring him back. But she did, even if her reasoning was still slightly unclear. Pouring punch on EJ’s head was funny to watch, but also unexpected. Gina was a wild card. Unpredictable. 

So when Gina leaned in and kissed him on the cheek, he didn’t know what to do.

Ricky stared at her in awe, struggling for form words. Gina smiled softly with a small blush on her face.

“Goodnight Ricky.”

He grabbed her hand before she could leave the car. Gina looked back at him curiously, waiting for him to do something. Ricky couldn’t put what he was feeling into words, but the one thing he knew for sure was that he’s never felt this way before. Not even with Nini. He didn’t know if he was going crazy, but this felt like the feeling he  _ should’ve  _ had when he was with Nini. 

But with Nini, it felt more like an obligation. Like he had to love her. It was like their lives were set up in front of them and it made sense. It’s what everyone expected and it was safe. 

This wasn’t.

Gina made Ricky want to take chances. Everything with her was new. It sounded scary, but to Ricky, it was like a fresh breath of air. Nothing was set in stone. He didn’t feel obligated to feel anything. Whatever he was feeling towards Gina, it was real. Not some obligation. Ricky wanted to hold onto that feeling for as long as he could, even if it didn’t last for long. 

Being with Gina didn’t make sense. No one would expect them to be together, let alone get along. But what mattered was that it made sense to Ricky, not anyone else. This was how he felt, and right now? All he wanted to do was be with Gina.

Ricky leaned forward and kissed Gina on the cheek, only pulling away slightly.

“Goodnight Gina.”

Her blush darkened, surprised that Ricky even made a move. Gina moved closer to the point where their noses were almost touching.

“Feeling bold tonight Bowen?” she teased. 

Ricky shrugged. “I guess you could say that.” 

Gina smiled, squeezing his arm gently before getting out of the car. She looked back at him when she walked up to her house, waving before walking inside. Ricky sighed and leaned back in his seat, watching her go. He left as soon as Gina got inside, driving home with the biggest smile on his face. Ricky immediately texted Big Red about everything as soon as he got home, still in disbelief of what just happened. He flopped back onto and stared up at his ceiling, the feeling of Gina pressing her lips against his cheek stuck on repeat in his mind. Ricky reached up and touched that spot with a blush on his face. 

  
If this is what love was  _ supposed  _ to feel like? He never wanted it to stop. 


End file.
